Voit, Torres & Frazier Reach “Super Two” Status: What it Means
It is no secret that the Yankees want to maintain a lower payroll than last season. However, 2020 MLB Home Run King Luke Voit, star infielder Gleyber Torres, and quick-handed outfielder Clint Frazier all earned themselves a significant pay bump for the 2021 season.
By reaching “Super Two” status, the three talented Yankees are no longer tied to the league minimum salary option for next season. Typically, a player needs to accrue three years of service time in the major leagues in order to move on from league minimum salary (this season is $570K) and into the first year of arbitration eligibility. However, the top 22% of players (measured by service time) that accrued less than three years of service time in the major leagues are also eligible for arbitration. Those players are considered to have Super Two status.
Instead of each being paid $570K this season, Spotrac projects Voit will earn $5.8 million, Torres will take home $2.95 million, and Frazier will make $2.1 million. So instead of potentially costing the Yankees $1.71 million to have the trio, it will potentially cost $10.85 million. However, it did not come as a surprise that any of the three would reach the Super Two status, as General Manager Brian Cashman is well aware when making roster moves as to how much service time each player has accrued and the consequences of moving the player.
Utilityman Miguel Andújar is the example of a player that came up just short of reaching Super Two status, and possibly by the Yankees’ design. Andújar started the season on the Yankees’ active roster, but shuttled back and forth from the majors to the alternate site throughout the year.
Miguel Andújar Transaction Log
August 6: Optioned to Alternate Site.
August 16: Recalled to Yankees (Ten days without major league service time accrual).
August 20: Optioned to Alternate Site.
August 25: Recalled to Yankees (Five days without major league service time accrual).
August 29: Optioned to Alternate Site.
September 4: Recalled to Yankees (Six days without major league service time accrual).
September 15: Optioned to alternate Site.
September 28: Recalled to Yankees (Thirteen days without major league service time accrual).
In total, Andújar spent thirty-four (34) days at the alternate site. The first option occurred when roster sizes were cut down after the first two weeks of the season. He also struggled in the major leagues, so part of the reason for his time at the alternate site can certainly be attributed to the Yankees’ desire to give Andújar regular at bats. But it was clear that Andújar was the first to go whenever a player had to be removed from the active roster, and it is hard to believe that the Yankees were unaware of Andújar remaining on the fringe of a pay bump towards the end of the 2020 season. In total, Andújar missed the Super Two cutoff by five days of service time.